Paula Frazer
Paula Frazer
Paula Frazer is a singer-songwriter, guitarist, and bass player currently on tour with her recently released album, What Is And Was, recorded with Los Angeles label New High Recordings in 2017.
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Google Play / Spotify
Paula’s unique, ethereal voice and beautiful songs are frequently described as dark country with an eclectic and lush mix of folk, blues, rock, and pop. She performs with her band Tarnation, which consists of singer-songwriter and guitarist Jacob Aranda, a talented artist in his own right, Sam Berman on drums, and David Cuetter (Big Still, That Hideous Strength) on pedal steel. Paula has a large fan base in the Bay area and performs regularly in venues like The Fillmore, The Rite Spot, The Utah Hotel, Brick and Mortar, Amnesia, the Verdi Club, Starline Social Club, and many other places.
Not many American singers with a country twang are actually from the Deep South, but such is the case for Paula. Born in Georgia and raised in Arkansas, she had her big break after moving to San Francisco and starting her band Tarnation in the 1990s. Paula released four critically acclaimed albums on Birdman Records and embarked on various touring appearances, including dates in Europe with Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds. She has also appeared on recordings and in concert with many bands and solo artists including Faith No More, Sean Lennon, Handsome Boy Modeling School, Frightwig, Tindersticks, and the Czars. Already having known a long and illustrious musical career, Paula’s new album What Is And Was is Paula’s first full-length release in over ten years. It’s a wonderful, complex record that will have the listener alternately dream and dance, swoon and laugh – and perhaps also tear up with emotion. Seeing Paula perform is watching a woman who brings all her lived and passionate experience to the stage.
Music and Video
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180 gram Translucent Red Colored Vinyl w/Gatefold Cover
Ships out within 5 days.
What Is and Was 03:15
Golden 03:50
In Some Time 03:20
Followed You There 03:51
Like a River 05:02
To the Ocean 04:55
Western Star 03:47
North Wind 03:04
People Say 03:23
Distant Star 03:27
Find My Heart 02:39
Paula Frazer's first album in 10 years. This 8th release has been in production for 5 years. Her full current lineup, active for nearly 3 years, appears on just 2 songs. One may ask, how does it come to pass that such a breathtaking singing voice is allowed to languish in obscurity like this? When you consider the impeccable quality of her music, the ethereal purity of her voice, the string of near perfect records she released every couple years since the early ’90s (under both her name and the Tarnation monicker) … How does this happen?
According to Paula, it’s a combination of bad timing, a general lack of interest from record labels, resulting in no deadlines, and the Napster related downfall of music sales … Who really knows? Not to say she hasn’t been hard at work all these years, but by her own admission, she hasn’t had a real touring band since the late ’90s, at least not for more than a year at a time – that is, until recently.
Anyone lucky enough to catch the current lineup of Tarnation performing live gets to enjoy a startling combination of musical personalities. Their sets usually consist of one half Paula’s songs, while the remainder are written and sung by Jacob Aranda, and the combination may stir up emotions you didn’t know you had. Paula and Jacob alternate lead vocal duties song per song, accompanying each other’s grave and gentle yearnings with perfect, understated harmonies and instrumentation, reinforced by Sam Berman’s steady drumming and the lush pedal steel guitar of virtuosic David Cuetter (Big Still, That Hideous Strength). You will hear all 4 play together on this record’s tracks “In Some Time” and “People Say,” and also on Aranda’s upcoming LP recorded last summer by the very same quartet.
The rest of the new album features several of Paula’s longtime musical collaborators: Patrick Main and Justin Frahm on keyboards, 4 other drummers, and backing vocals by Elisa Randazzo, Amy Fowler, and Greg of The Moore Brothers. A half dozen other stalwart Bay Area musical entities appear, all adding to the gorgeous lush sound herein. For those unfamiliar with Paula and her music, the question may arise: “Where does this unearthly beautiful sound come from?”
released June 30, 2017
All songs written by Paula Frazer - Tarnation Music Publishing, BMI
Recorded in San Francisco at Ellsworth Analog, El Studio, Nigel's place
Engineers: Nigel Pavao, Desmond Shea, Paula Frazer, Jay Bronzini
Mastered by Alex Oropeza at Obscura Digital
Produced by Nigel Pavao, Desmond Shea and Paula Frazer
Mixed by Nigel Pavao at Discrete and Studio C at Hyde Street Audio
Photos by Paula Frazer, Olivier Riquelme, Lyn Gaza, Christine Shields, Jay Blakesburg, Amy Blaschke, Greg Dubrow, Robert Tachoiresv vv
Design: John Borruso
Special Thanks to Tom Richardson and Discrete at Hyde Street, Phil Manley, Kelley Stoltz
All physical products include a link in the confirmation email of the digital album.
Digital download
What Is and Was 03:15
Golden 03:50
In Some Time 03:20
Followed You There 03:51
Like a River 05:02
To the Ocean 04:55
Western Star 03:47
North Wind 03:04
People Say 03:23
Distant Star 03:27
Find My Heart 02:39
Paula Frazer's first album in 10 years. This 8th release has been in production for 5 years. Her full current lineup, active for nearly 3 years, appears on just 2 songs. One may ask, how does it come to pass that such a breathtaking singing voice is allowed to languish in obscurity like this? When you consider the impeccable quality of her music, the ethereal purity of her voice, the string of near perfect records she released every couple years since the early ’90s (under both her name and the Tarnation monicker) … How does this happen?
According to Paula, it’s a combination of bad timing, a general lack of interest from record labels, resulting in no deadlines, and the Napster related downfall of music sales … Who really knows? Not to say she hasn’t been hard at work all these years, but by her own admission, she hasn’t had a real touring band since the late ’90s, at least not for more than a year at a time – that is, until recently.
Anyone lucky enough to catch the current lineup of Tarnation performing live gets to enjoy a startling combination of musical personalities. Their sets usually consist of one half Paula’s songs, while the remainder are written and sung by Jacob Aranda, and the combination may stir up emotions you didn’t know you had. Paula and Jacob alternate lead vocal duties song per song, accompanying each other’s grave and gentle yearnings with perfect, understated harmonies and instrumentation, reinforced by Sam Berman’s steady drumming and the lush pedal steel guitar of virtuosic David Cuetter (Big Still, That Hideous Strength). You will hear all 4 play together on this record’s tracks “In Some Time” and “People Say,” and also on Aranda’s upcoming LP recorded last summer by the very same quartet.
The rest of the new album features several of Paula’s longtime musical collaborators: Patrick Main and Justin Frahm on keyboards, 4 other drummers, and backing vocals by Elisa Randazzo, Amy Fowler, and Greg of The Moore Brothers. A half dozen other stalwart Bay Area musical entities appear, all adding to the gorgeous lush sound herein. For those unfamiliar with Paula and her music, the question may arise: “Where does this unearthly beautiful sound come from?”
released June 30, 2017
All songs written by Paula Frazer - Tarnation Music Publishing, BMI
Recorded in San Francisco at Ellsworth Analog, El Studio, Nigel's place
Engineers: Nigel Pavao, Desmond Shea, Paula Frazer, Jay Bronzini
Mastered by Alex Oropeza at Obscura Digital
Produced by Nigel Pavao, Desmond Shea and Paula Frazer
Mixed by Nigel Pavao at Discrete and Studio C at Hyde Street Audio
Photos by Paula Frazer, Olivier Riquelme, Lyn Gaza, Christine Shields, Jay Blakesburg, Amy Blaschke, Greg Dubrow, Robert Tachoiresv vv
Design: John Borruso
Special Thanks to Tom Richardson and Discrete at Hyde Street, Phil Manley, Kelley Stoltz